Construction ( of housings, plants, shops...) and civil engineering are the largest markets for adhesives, in tons and also in Euros, because large surfaces and thick joints are involved.
In the past, bonding and sealing of traditional construction materials was done with cement, plaster and natural adhesives for ceramic tiles, erection of walls and decoration materials.
But since world war 2 many new construction materials have been developed such as plastics, plasterboard panels, insulation foams, wood based panels ( particle board...) and many new synthetic raw materials for decoration, and all these materials needed new adhesives in order to display a good adhesion to these new materials, improved performances and easier application techniques.
Also, the building of houses required faster techniques of construction in order to meet with the new prefabrication techniques, to provide faster building and erecting or prefabricated parts, panels, roofs, partitions.
At time of application, adhesives and sealants are liquid or paste products, so that they can be spread evenly on the substrates.